Global Accessibility Awareness Day 2025 Date, History and Significance: A Day That Aims To Focus on Digital Access and Inclusion for People With Disabilities

Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD) is an awareness day that is observed on the third Thursday of May. The day aims to focus on digital access and inclusion for people with disabilities. The goal of GAAD is to encourage individuals, businesses, organisations, and governments to consider the needs of all users, including those with disabilities, when designing and developing digital content and technology. As you gear up to commence Global Accessibility Awareness Day 2025, here's everything you ought to know about this important observance.

Global Accessibility Awareness Day 2025 Date

This year, Global Accessibility Awareness Day will be observed on Thursday, May 15. As per the Global Accessibility Awareness Day website, the purpose of GAAD is to get everyone talking, thinking and learning about digital access or inclusion and people with different disabilities. It will be the 14th Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD) this year.

Global Accessibility Awareness Day History

Global Accessibility Awareness Day was launched in May 2012. It was inspired by a blog post from November 2011 by Los Angeles–based web developer Joe Devon. Devon worked with Jennison Asuncion, an accessibility professional from Toronto, to co-found GAAD. It draws attention to the need to make sure digital assets, including websites, video, audio, and social media, are accessible to everyone, including people with limited vision, hearing, or mobility.

Digital accessibility refers to the ability of people with disabilities/impairments to independently consume and/or interact with digital (e.g., web, mobile) applications and content.

Global Accessibility Awareness Day Significance

Global Accessibility Awareness Day is a global day to shine a light on efforts to ensure that all users, including those living with disabilities, are able to obtain the same successful outcomes using web-based services as those without impairments. The University of Pittsburgh is committed to ensuring equal access by making its websites and all other electronic and information technology accessible to all users.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 14, 2025 04:41 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).